Dutch politician Wilders vows ‘I will be prime minister’ at X

AMSTERDAM, Nov 25 (Reuters) – Veteran Dutch anti-Islam politician Geert Wilders vowed on Saturday to become prime minister of the Netherlands, following his party’s landslide election victory.

In a lengthy post on X, previously on Twitter, expressing frustration at other parties’ reluctance to cooperate with his Freedom Party (PVV), Wilders said he would “continue to moderate” his positions if necessary to gain power.

“Today, tomorrow or the day after, the PVV will be part of the government and I will be the prime minister of this beautiful country,” Wilders wrote.

Although Wilders’ Freedom Party (PVV) fared well ahead of rivals on an anti-immigration platform on November 22, his party is projected to win only 25% of the seats in the Dutch parliament.

That means he has to collaborate with at least two moderate parties to form a government.

On Friday, conservative Prime Minister Mark Rudd’s conservative VVD party, which shared many of Wilders’ views on immigration, said it would not join him in cabinet.

However, the VVD’s new leader, Dilan Yesilkos, has not ruled out providing support outside the Wilders government.

Peter Omdjicht, who leads the centrist reformist NSC party and is also seen as a partner in Wilders’ government, said cooperation would be difficult because of Wilders’ extreme positions, which appear to violate Dutch constitutional protections on religious freedom.

Dutch coalition negotiations usually take several months, and positions on the parties’ willingness to work with each other can change over time.

If Wilders is unable to form a government, centrist combinations that exclude the PVV are theoretically possible, while fresh elections are a last resort.

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